Don Markenstein's Toonopedia has a long and complex article about the evolution of this character, which, unlike many others from the period when it was first drawn, remains owned by an artist still interested in using the character, Max Allan Collins, known as the creator of Hellboy and his association with Dark Horse Comics. Johnny is a hero from the pre-James Bond era, when both violence and sex were less explicit, but he's morphed enough times that his appearence fighting for freedom and justice in the twenty-first century would not be a surprise.

I'm not sure there is a definitive listing of all the spin-off novels from the original movies, but yet again, it is fall, and there's another franchise novel, Karen Traviss' Bloodlines (Star Wars: Legacy of the Force). By now Star Wars more than rivals the immense following of Star Trek, having become a self-contained fandom, with fan writing, costumes, and a ready-made crowd for any event from book signing to hospital visits. The book is not bad and the sense of community, driven by commercialism though it is, makes one think of the days when being fan was a proud and lonely thing. It may still be proud, but it is lonely no longer.

It's easy to forget just why the biggest award in the comics world is the Eisner. Will Eisner's New York: Life in the Big City, which has an introduction by Neil Gaiman, brings it all back. It showcases four of the artist's later works, which have, no matter which characters are in the panels, one principle player—New York itself. People who will never look each other in the face imagine what might happen if they did; two pairs of shoes dance a wordless ballet of meeting and parting; and the grime and graffitti are art, too.

Death of a Musketeer by Sarah D'Almeida develops the interesting concept of a mystery set among the plotlines of Dumas' classic The Three Musketeers. Since Dumas himself milked his famous novel for quite a series of deservedly lesser-known sequels, he probably hasn't even stirred in his grave. Unfortunately, since most readers will know the original story, there not much room to maneuver the new one. However, the setting and concept might stand a revisit and this is a promising author. Out in early November.

Jaime Hernandez is still working on the same series of graphics novels and his characters have aged and grown older along with him. Eye Net has an interesting interview with him about how it all happened and where he thinks it's going to go. Especially now that his wife is mad at him about what's happening to his main character, a woman now in her forties. You've seen Maggie in the New York Times, even if you don't know his and his brother Gilbert's work in Love and Rockets.